regional political party in Assam state, northeastern India, founded in 1985. The AGP’s initial purported and yet limited objective was to “protect the interests of the genuine residents of Assam” by seeking to deport a large number of illegal immigrants who had been coming into the state, mainly from Bangladesh and especially since the early 1970s. Over time it developed a broader goal of protecting and promoting the regional identity of the state vis-à-vis the central government in New Delhi. Between 1979 and 1985, Assam experienced a prolonged popular uprising by those strongly opposed to the presence of illegal immigrants in the state. The movement was largely spearheaded by the All Assam Students’ Union (AASU), led by Prafulla Kumar Mahanta. After an agreement with the central government was reached in 1985 (whereby immigrants arriving after 1971 would be subject to deportation), the AASU and others collaborated in the formation of the AGP in order to provide a political...